The Austens: New Year's Celebration and New Play Reading

* Please note that this is a ticketed event. Tickets, which start at $38, are only available through the Symphony Space box office. *

Ring in the new year with Jane Austen and her friends!

The Holy Theatre and the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) New York Metropolitan Region cordially invite you to The Austens — a funny, fierce new dramedy by Sarah Rose Kearns, directed by Andrus Nichols and featuring Kate Hamill as Jane Austen.

This one-time-only benefit performance also stars Evan Horwitz as Thomas Carter, Mahira Kakkar as Cassandra Austen, Carman Lacivita as James Austen, Colleen Litchfield as Anna Austen, Samantha Steinmetz as Martha Lloyd, and Rita Wolf as Mrs. Austen, with Ebony Vines reading stage directions.

Join your fellow Janeites at 2:15 p.m. for complimentary prosecco, light refreshments, and live music in Bar Thalia. The Austens runs from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. in the Leonard Nimoy Thalia.

Tickets start at $38, and all tickets include admission to the preshow reception. VIP tickets, priced at $60, help to fund The Holy Theatre’s ongoing educational programming. VIP ticket-holders also receive a special gift box full of Austen-themed treats.

ABOUT THE AUSTENS

It’s the spring of 1810 and Jane Austen has sworn off novel-writing. Crushed by the nonpublication of her novel “Susan,” Jane approaches middle age determined to keep the lid on her ambitions: to take what satisfaction she can in her everyday life as a shabby-genteel spinster, appropriately grateful for the relatively-comfortable home that she now shares with her mother, her beloved sister, and their best friend Martha Lloyd. The plan is working, sort of, till the entrance of Anna — Jane’s troubled teenaged niece — packed off to Chawton Cottage by her stepmother, after she’s embarrassed the family by breaking an engagement. Anna’s recklessness and daring, her pain, and her palpable need of healing stories, gradually revive Jane’s own divine discontent and rekindle her passion for her work. For dedicated Janeites and newcomers alike, The Austens is an ode to female friendship, a love-letter to frustrated artists everywhere, and a lesson in how not to let the bastards get you down.

The Holy Theatre is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit arts organization in New York City, with a mission to make plays and other gatherings that leave people feeling nourished, connected, and more able to be brave. www.theholytheatre.org

The JASNA New York Metropolitan Region is a regional division of JASNA, the Jane Austen Society of North America, which is the world’s largest literary society devoted to the study of Jane Austen. JASNA New York Metro, the local group, serves book-lovers in and beyond the five boroughs of New York City, creating opportunities for curious, thoughtful individuals to exchange ideas, feel a sense of belonging, and continue learning throughout life. www.jasnany.org